The Condor and the Eagle - Where Heart and Mind Meet.

It was when I was in South America that I heard of the ‘Eagle and Condor’ prophecy.  I am not at all an authority on this prophecy but my understanding is that it is an ancient prophecy that was believed to have started in the Amazon and then spread throughout the Americas, thousands of years ago. Many distinct cultures from all over the world are familiar with such an augury.

The prophecy speaks of society dividing into two distinct paths: that of the ‘Eagle’ (the North), representing the industrial, science, mind, and masculine principles; and that of the ‘Condor’ (the South), representing the heart, intuition, mystery and feminine principles.

The prophecy stated that every 500 years there is an era, called a Pachacuti. It was predicted that the 1490s would begin a period during which the Eagle people would become very powerful and dominant and drive the Condor people nearly out of existence.

We are aware of this happening when the Conquistadors invaded South America and certainly in my own country, Australia; and also in many other parts of the world where indigenous populations were dominated by invaders from the ‘North’. Lamentably, the effects of this widespread colonization continue into the present day.

The 5th Pachacuti period began in the 1990s. It is a potential time for the Eagle and the Condor to fly together and each bring the best of themselves to birth a higher human consciousness. That time is NOW.

The ‘Eagle’ represents the masculine principles of being outwardly directed, driven, visible, active, open and expansive – the ‘activating’ principle. The ‘mind’.

The ‘Condor’ represents the feminine principles of creativity, intuition, introspection, flow, receptivity and mystery – the allowing and waiting principles. The ‘heart’.

The masculine and feminine principles are metaphors, analogies, archetypes and generalisations. They are not limited to gender, with both masculine and feminine principles being present in both men and women, as well as in all societies - but to different degrees and with different emphasis. I repeat - they are not gender specific.

One is not better than the other; they each have their roles. Ideally, individually and collectively, we weave both masculine and feminine principles together harmoniously for favourable outcomes.

We generally associate the development and utilization of technology and industry with the ‘mind’ and the trust of and connection to nature and spirituality with the ‘heart’.

We also associate the masculine principles with the left hemisphere of the brain, with its analytical thought, logic and intellectual reasoning; and the feminine principles with the right hemisphere of the brain, with its pattern detection, gestalt awareness and intuition.

For optimum functioning, both hemispheres of the brain are designed to work together in an integrated fashion; and this is how the masculine and feminine principles work together harmoniously in all of life – by each respectfully contributing to and supporting the other.

We can become aware of how the ‘masculine’ and the ‘feminine’ principles influence us individually in our day-to-day lives, and also how they interact in society at large and operate in the collective. We can see how these dynamics play out in our relationships, in our institutions and communities, as well as within our own brains and psyches.

To bring anything into creation we need to harmoniously use both masculine and feminine principles. For example, a woman giving birth will be utilizing the masculine principles, as it is usually a very active process; whereas, she will be utilizing the feminine principles while pregnant, as it is a receptive and waiting time.

The masculine principles, when distorted, can give rise to: aggression, hostility, dominance, arrogance and destruction.

The feminine principles, when distorted, can give rise to: dependency, passivity, helplessness and acquiescing to others’ authority.

How the Eagle and the Condor - the masculine and the feminine principles - interact in Health Care:

In my own domain, having worked as a medical doctor for many years, in addition to having an interest in other health care paradigms, I am aware of the juxtaposition between Western, allopathic medicine (represented by the ‘Eagle’) and other more traditional and esoteric healing disciplines (represented by the ‘Condor’).

The world of frenetic, ten-minute medical consultations stands in stark contrast to the world of unhurried, 18 hour or even timeless ceremonies, where the focus is on completion of the process rather than time. The paradigm of hard, verifiable scientific facts and the mechanical, ‘fix it’ approach of mainstream medicine seems in stark contrast to other healing disciplines that engage the realms of intuition, mystery and the secrets of the unconscious mind.

In Western medicine, clearly the masculine principles are dominant. We use them in spades. And obviously they are very useful in areas such as the treatment of acute medical conditions and trauma, where an expedient, pro-active approach is often needed.

However, for the more entrenched, chronic conditions (physical and psychological), that defy the medical model and for which there are not easy, effective treatment solutions, a more in-depth, introspective approach is often needed. This involves utilizing the feminine principles to enter the ‘shadow’ - the hidden, unconscious aspects of our experience that so affect our health and wellbeing.

Looking into the ‘shadow’, which utilizes the feminine principles, is not yet accepted as part of our general, largely patriarchal, Western medical culture. ‘Shadow’ simply means that of which we are unaware – what is hidden from our conscious mind. And what is hidden from our conscious mind is what most affects our health and wellbeing.

Other healing traditions, such as the shamanic healing traditions that I witnessed, and experienced, whilst in South America, engage more of the ‘feminine’ aspects of healing – though of course they use both. Sometimes with the help of the plant medicines, those hidden, unknown aspects of ourselves, that might span space and time, are brought to the surface to be acknowledged, addressed and healed.

Mainstream medicine is based on the unquestioned assumption that all illness is a distortion of nature and, by definition, harmful, malign and an unbidden invader of sorts. This widespread belief that has been programmed into us fuels the ‘problem-reaction-solution’ paradigm on which most modern health care is based. Whereas, the more nature based and esoteric healing traditions appreciate that illness is often a compensation for a deeper aberration and that there is meaning and cause beyond just the physical aspects of our being. They understand that illness is sometimes the teacher rather than always the enemy.

No one group owns health care though Western, allopathic medicine has assumed that onus.

My own interest in mind-body medicine – or what I prefer to call ‘conscious health’ – has helped me understand the essential role of combining mind and heart in addressing issues of health that reflect problems within our whole being, not just our surface physicality. We are not machines. We are complex bio-energy systems, where all components are interconnected to act as a whole. Therefore we should be treated as a whole.

Western medicine is very focused on the physical, and often at the expense of the psychological and emotional contributors of an illness. As with trying to protect from a pathogen such as a virus, physical barriers will only go so far without also addressing the internal milieu of our vulnerabilities, our internal point of attraction to what we manifest on the physical level.

For healing and the optimum practice of health care (as in any other area of life) we need both – the best of ‘mind’ and scientific, intellectual based understandings, and the best of ‘heart’, representing the more wisdom - based, intuitive and mysterious aspects of our humanness.

But when the mind is cut off from the heart it becomes a distorted, out-of-balance system. Heart and mind are designed to work together, with the heart on lead. The heart knows and the mind is meant to implement that knowing.

When the mind is untethered from the heart it can be very clever in its justifications and often uses force and domination to push forward its own agendas. When the feminine or ‘heart’ is out of balance it risks lapsing into ineffective sympathy, dependency and submissive obedience. It will relinquish its power and its will to what it considers to be the authority voice, which is often under the guise of the rescuer or saviour.

In current times we are becoming more aware of how the distorted aspects of the ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’ principles have come to the fore as the 2020/21 pandemic drama unfolds. Though now greatly magnified, no doubt these distortions have been prevalent for a very long time prior to present-day events.

The push to mandate (i.e. force) medical procedures, fuelled by the ‘problem-reaction-solution’ agenda, reveals arrogance and domination of the highest order - aspects of the masculine principles in markedly distorted form. And the weakened submissive stance of the feminine principles, when in distorted form, allow the relinquishing of self-authority and personal sovereignty to those who are more than happy to take that power away. But at what cost?

The distorted aspects of the masculine and feminine principles in health care (as in any area of life) are drawn together as in the classic narcissist/co-dependent relationship, where there are powerful attractive forces and promises of a wonderful partnership initially, but that we know often ends in tears and devastation. Or, is clung to in a very compromised way in an attempt to have the dubious needs of both parties met.

Nature or science – or the best of both?

In the world of modern health care we have been trained to trust the artificial over the natural. For many, the healing bounty of the natural world cannot compete with the compelling drama of sophisticated medical technology. Thus, the fervent pursuit of the next wonder drug, the latest surgical technique and the burgeoning vaccination schedule that promises to save us from all illnesses.

The majority of mainstream health care providers and consumers are, in fact, deeply suspicious of anything that is not produced in a laboratory and will readily hand themselves over to the world of technology rather than explore natural healing resources and lifestyle factors or delve into their inner world to explore the possible emotional roots of their dysfunctions.

We have decided that our clever intellects are superior to the innate intelligence of nature - the very design of life. When we assume that we have unquestionable dominance over the natural world and its inhabitants, we reveal our utter arrogance and other regrettable aspects of the male principles in perverted form. This is matched with the feminine principles that, when in distorted form, deny our intuitive knowing and innate connection to nature and spirit, to acquiesce to the dictates of those mind-driven forces.

Humans evolved to introduce the scientific method as a way of growing beyond religious dogma and control; however, science has become the new god to whom we bow and we can be as emotionally attached to it as we were to the former. Blind faith in science is actually an emotional response and very unscientific. We have attached our collective egos to the scientific method and the unspoken belief is that we can control life and death by means of science and technology alone.

Whereas, intuition is a constant internal guide that we, particularly in the world of health care, do not value because we cannot tie it down and dissect it. It is difficult to put it under the umbrella of ‘evidence based’ so we – health care practitioner and consumer alike - have tended to become distrustful of, or cast aside, our own inner knowing and common sense at the alter of hard, cold scientific facts.

We forget that health care is as much an art as a science. And, where does mystery fit in? – Dare I ask!

Of course science has its brilliance, is part of the evolution of our species and has advanced and helped the lives of many. It is reassuring that in any area of life, including the world of science, technology and health care, when mind and heart work together, when intellect and intuition find a balance, when we utilize creativity and are guided by inspiration, the outcome is likely to be positive.

However, when heart is cut off from the mind in the name of science, atrocities can be permitted under the guise of ‘for the greater good’. The horrific and unconscionable way animals are experimented on for the sake of scientific research is such an example. Most people will just not question this as they feel that it is their absolute right to use any other species to their own ends. This is the dark side of science – devoid of any humanity.

We know that much of science that was once held sacrosanct (and dare those who questioned it!) was later upgraded or dismissed as being faulty or even harmful. Or, we just evolved beyond it. Nothing in science is absolute, though we are led to believe that it is. No science is100% pure and accurate and devoid of the possibility of being subject to human bias and agendas.

Who is the final authority?

Having been programmed to only focus on what can harm us from the illusory external world has many of us only looking for solutions that are external to ourselves. Rather than honing our own inner resources, physical and psychological, to help us understand and resolve our dysfunctions, we look for the ‘magic bullet’ that will take it all away.

It goes without saying that there are safe and effective external treatments that can be very helpful. Of course, reliable authorities and experts in their fields, who have our best interests at heart, should guide us. However, any capable adult should be their own authority and have the right to personally consider and decide upon any advice that they might be given.

When we do not exercise that power within, we readily hand it over to the external ‘cure’, the external authority and comply to their commands, especially when we are driven by our survival fears. Unfortunately, some parties are eager to leverage people’s survival fears under the guise of ‘health care’. Many people are actually afraid of their own inner power as it means personal responsibility and thus many prefer to relinquish it – and that is their choice. We are seeing this dynamic in magnified form at present.

We need to be reminded that control and force is NOT power and submissiveness and obsequiousness is NOT security.

Right now we are in the biggest battle between heart and mind, technology and nature, and the masculine and feminine principles. Clearly the solution is to throw down the sword and integrate the best of both.

We are moving from a time of competition to a prospective time of collaboration, as represented by the Eagle and the Condor flying together wing to wing. As said, according to the prophecy, now is a potential time to bring together the best aspects of the ‘Eagle’ and the ‘Condor’, the masculine and the feminine, the mind and the heart, science and nature, and of the North, South, East and West. This should be without diluting or diminishing their distinctive, individual qualities, while each respectfully contributes their unique perspectives and gifts for the benefit of the whole. In health care, as in any area of life, this is what true integration is about.

Dr Catherine Fyans is a holistic medical practitioner/conscious health facilitator and the author of The Wounding of Health Care: From Fragmentation to Integration